


argumentative

by setosdarkness



Series: OTP Collection - JuHaku [8]
Category: Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic
Genre: M/M, Manga Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-21
Updated: 2014-12-21
Packaged: 2018-03-02 14:15:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2814965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/setosdarkness/pseuds/setosdarkness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Judar is unhappy with Hakuryuu suddenly distancing himself from him, because of his connection to Al Thamen. [JuHaku, manga spoilers]</p><blockquote>
  <p>"Stay away from me. I don’t want to associate with someone like you who works for them."<br/>"What does that matter?"<br/>"Because," Hakuryuu hates how he can feel tears welling up in his eyes in frustration, "because you’re with them—"<br/>"<i>—but I love you. Isn’t that enough</i>?"</p>
</blockquote>
            </blockquote>





	argumentative

•••

"Hey!!! Hakuryuu!!!"

"What is it, _lord priest_?”

Hakuryuu makes sure to pronounce his words with the right amount of disdain – _a lot_ – and aloofness. He also makes sure to maintain his lips in a straight line, his eyebrows furrowed – a look of utter disapproval.

"Ew, why are you being so distant, Hakuryuu~???" Hakuryuu congratulates himself for not giving into the urge to sigh heavily at the way Judar continues clinging to him like a leech, for not elbowing Judar on the other’s toned stomach, for not stomping on Judar’s bare feet. He also congratulates himself for not giving into the urge to look at Judar’s surely pouting face. "I feel all weird hearing you call me lord priest. Maybe you should call me that again?"

"Shut up, Judar."

"Aw, on another note, I like you better if you call me by that name~!"

Hakuryuu also bravely resists the urge to roll his eyes at the other’s childish tone. It’s almost hard to believe that someone like Judar is actually a strong person that’s one-of-a-kind – but then again, it’s also hard to believe that Hakuryuu has been blind for so long to not sense his own mother’s evil aura and to be so oblivious of Judar’s connections to the darkness of this country.

His hands tighten their hold on his spear. His spear instructor always leaves him behind whenever Judar shows up – what a coward – so he needs to learn to deal with Judar on his own. He can’t rely on his sister on these kinds of times as well – but then again, it’s not like he had to _learn_ to avoid Judar before. This is just one of the reasons why he hates that woman for ruining everything good to him.

"Stay away from me," Hakuryuu hisses in the end, elbowing Judar roughly when the other’s hands find their way inside his thinner-than-usual robe. Trust Judar to take advantage of how Hakuryuu isn’t wearing his standard five layers of clothes, no thanks to the sweltering summer heat. "I have no plans of associating with a pawn of that organization."

Judar doesn’t activate his _borg_ to block his blow and Hakuryuu is honestly shocked to feel hard muscles against his right elbow. “Eh? I know you haaaaate your mother, but what does that have to do with me? You don’t hate me, right, Hakuryuu?”

Hakuryuu keeps his lips pursed, because he doesn’t really _hate_ Judar. His hatred is reserved for that woman, after all. But then, he knows how handsy and clingy Judar can be whenever he’s pleased – and he’s sure to be pleased if Hakuryuu admits that he doesn’t really hate him. So he instead settles for a quiet repetition of his earlier words: “Stay away from me. I don’t want to associate with someone like you who works for _them_.”

"What does that matter?"

Judar sounds so _sure_ that Hakuryuu splutters.

What does that matter?!

Judar is part of the organization that’s infecting this country, making everything rot from inside out, responsible for taking his family away from him a flash of fire and ash.

 _Everything_ matters.

Judar places a bit of distance between them – but it’s somehow more intimate and suffocating that they’re standing face-to-face now instead, with Judar’s left foot tracing an idle line from Hakuryuu’s right heel to calf, with Judar’s callus-free right hand gripping his left and displacing the spear that’s now instead on the ground, with Judar’s left hand partially on his neck, fingers splayed out to touch the tips of his chin. Hakuryuu feels too warm, almost as though the Great Fire has never ceased and has instead returned to burn him alive.

"What does that matter?" Judar repeats his question, sounding more whiny but still very sure.

It’s annoying – because Judar still treats him the same way as before, as though nothing has changed, even when the whole world has already crumbled around him.

“ _Because_ ,” Hakuryuu hates how he can _feel_ tears welling up in his eyes in frustration, “ _because you’re with them_ —”

Hakuryuu takes a shuddering breath and wants to add more, but only once his voice is more stable and less wobbly, because Judar still looks like he’s very serene, which is a joke.

"—but I love you." Judar tells him, straight-forwardly, as though he’s just relating how much he enjoys watching people die on wars, as though he’s just cataloguing how much he loves the peach dessert cooked by the castle’s chefs, as though he’s just telling Hakuryuu how he likes sleeping beside him. "Isn’t that enough?"

Hakuryuu feels his heart clench and his insides burn.

"STUPID JUDAR!" He cries out instead, pulling away violently and nearly tripping over his fallen spear. "STUPID, UGLY, DUMBASS!"

"Hey, I’m not ugly!" Judar protests, pulling him back by his hands. "Hakuryuu, take that back!"

“ _I hate you_!”

"Hey!" Judar sounds distressed, even if his face still looks like a porcelain doll. "Isn’t it enough?!"

Nothing’s ever enough nowadays.

“ _I hate you_!” Hakuryuu repeats instead, not knowing what else to say to get rid of the suffocating feeling that’s surely just loneliness and anger swirled into a chaotic mess. “ _I hate you_!”

(And for the next couple of years, he believes that too.)

•••

"…it was enough."

Hakuryuu mutters, many years in the future, to the pale skin of Judar’s nape, words partially muffled by the unraveled braid of thick hair.

"…Hm? Whatisithakuryuu," Judar mumbles sleepily, his fingers tightening their hold briefly around Hakuryuu’s right hand.

Hakuryuu almost feels bad for disturbing the other’s sleep when he knows that his magi is tired from spending all day alternating between learning more magic from the undamaged scrolls and from communicating with Matal Mogamett’s rukh, as well as using his newly-acquired knowledge into use. But he suddenly remembers that day, when Judar first and last mentions the word love on anything that has nothing to do with peaches or chaos or wars.

He’s a few years late, but he’d like to reply to the other’s question nevertheless.

He buries his burning face to Judar’s nape, breathing in the smell of the peach shampoo he’s so very fond of, as well as the sweat from their recent activity.

"It’s nothing. Go to sleep, Judar." He commands, not as a king, but as simply Hakuryuu. He squeezes Judar’s hands gently, probably the only act of gentleness he’s capable of nowadays.

"Mmm."

Hakuryuu keeps his lips in a straight line or else Judar will accuse him of getting soft, which just won’t do for someone who’s dead-set on destroying the whole world.

This is definitely better than the so-called right path.

This is enough.

•••

(Hakuryuu doesn’t say anything else, but since Judar knows him better than anyone else, because the two of them are the same, Judar _knows_. It took too long, but he’s glad that Hakuryuu finally realizes that they’re always on the same side. And that is more than enough.)  
  
••• **end**

**Author's Note:**

> • originally posted @ [my tumblr](http://athina39.tumblr.com/post/105743912220/magi-juhaku-fic-argumentative-1-1)  
> • Dedicated to realmy-san / Libika-san :) I hope you get well (better? betterer? bestest?) soon! :)  
> • Also inspired by PreseaMoon, because her fic and her comments are always so lovely! Clingy JuHaku = ❤  
> • This was just supposed to be 100 words WTF this is just literally Judar saying "BUT I LOVE YOU, ISN’T THAT ENOUGH" and Hakuryuu flails. Why is this so long. Why is it so hard to write about pre-depravity Hakuryuu – I find it hard to visualize him being meaner to Judar LOL anyway, affectionate & friendly childhood (and even now, touchy-feely!) JuHaku is canon so. :D


End file.
